I just recently heard that televisions usually can be found at discounted prices after the Super Bowl is over. White sales are common in January and so forth. I figure there’s a whole world of seasonal opportunities out there that I am unaware of, beside the obvious ones like snoblowers and swimsuits.
So in a normal, non-recession year when should I look for deals?
At least some of them are regional. For instance, here in a college town, I’ve found that used cars are more expensive in the fall (when students are moving in and deciding they need a car), but cheaper in the spring (when students are moving out). I don’t know if this holds for other locations, though.
Items are commonly cheapest at 2 points each year:[ul]
[li]at the start of the season, when everyone has them on sale[/li][li]at the end of the season, when everyone has them on close-out sales[/li][/ul]For example, right now here in Minnesota, snow shovels are on sale, since we’re having our first snow of the winter. They will be on sale again, probably even cheaper, next March, when the winter is ending. But if you buy them then, you have to store them for half a year before using them. Same way, lawnmowers & swimsuits go on sale in the Spring, and go on close-out sale toward the end of Summer.
There are also items that go on sale at a specific time of year, just because all the stores put them on sale at that time. Appliances, for example. They are used year-round, not seasonal at all. But there are traditional times that stores put appliances on sale, just because … I guess, just because that’s the time they’ve always had them on sale.
You should also consider goods with strong used markets. Bikes, from what I’ve heard, get cheaper in winter and more expensive in summer. I don’t know if stores have matching sales, that’s just regarding the used market.
Another obvious one is hardcover books which usually get discounted right before the paperback edition is published.
The best time to buy a DVD is the week of its release. The companies like to drive up the sales so they can announce it as “the number one top seller in the country”.
Before the recent drastic run up and then drop in gas prices, I found that the best time to buy gas was on Thursdays. Stations would raise their costs Friday mornings, I assume because people were running errands (drop off the dry cleaning, fill up the car) and travelling on the weekends. Then prices would slowly drift down Monday - Thursday, to be bumped up again on Friday.
Eat at seafood restaurants on a Tuesday. The fresh supplies come in on Monday but you might still get served last week’s fish if you eat then. Wait a day, then you’ve got great chances of getting the freshest food.